Sleep Is For Cats
by Zarius
Summary: Leonardo is hearing voices, but duty calls...what weighs heavily on his mind, and can he put it to bed?


**TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES:**

**SLEEP IS FOR CATS**

**WRITTEN BY ZARIUS**

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**Disclaimer: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles are trademarked by Nickelodeon. This is a non-profit venture**

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"_Do you beg for sleep Turtle?"_ came a voice which echoed across the blackened night, filling the thoughts of Leonardo as he remained perched atop a rooftop building, peering down to see a young couple being threatened by a bunch of shady gang members brandishing broken wine bottles, waving them about and thrusting them at the frightened pair.

"Sleep should be reserved only for cats" said Leonardo, as he prepared to descend from the roof and spring into action.

"What are you?" Leonardo asked. "I've asked this question of you through the day, and through the night, now it's about time you gave me a clear answer"

"You are so quick to ask...what about the others? Surely you should have asked them? What about the ones observing you right now? They don't have a clue what is going on? What I mean to you?"

"You're a voice...another loud and futile attempt by self-doubt to challenge me in a temporary moment of fear" Leonardo said, swiftly descending down the ladder attached to the rooftop, lowering himself down to a level where he would be able to leap from the ladder and spring onto the thugs and seize them by surprise.

"I'm a reminder" said the voice, "Don't you know there's an anniversary coming up?"

"That's all you're here for...to tell me to be giddy we stepped into some sticky green ooze and emerged as defenders of a world that becomes frequently shadier?"

"Do you regret all the days of your life then?" asked the voice. Leonardo elected to ignore it, the attack was imminent, he needed all the concentration necessary to co-ordinate his attack

"Answer the question now, be honest, be exact" said the voice

Leonardo focused, he spread his arms wide, he leaned forward, throwing himself off of the ladder, he reached for the back of his shell and pulled out his katana blades, and as he swam through the clear air, the thugs caught sight of him, but were too late to move out of the way as the full weight of the Turtle came crashing down on them, Leonardo got up and grabbed one of the mobsters, throwing him against the wall and pinning him to the spot with one of his blades.

The other mobster, a thin man with a misty green tongue carrying a packet of dyed lime candy in his pocket, tried to use the broken glass bottle against the Turtle, Leonardo ducked the attacks, kicked the mobster's leg from underneath him, then placed one foot firmly on the crook's neck. He stared intently into the mobster's eyes and found himself lost in another exchange with the voice

"You know what kind of stories there are about your special day...why don't you read more about them?" the voice said

"I'm busy protecting other stories" Leonardo said aloud, looking to the couple, he noticed the woman was very, very pregnant.

"Go. Create a new tale" he said

The frightened couple nodded, and scrambled out of the alleyway. Leonardo kicked the mobster with the green tongue square in the head, walked up to his partner, and also, with a swift and efficient head butt, subdued him also, before removing the blade from his shoulder and depositing his swords back in his shell.

"I don't have the night, day, or time for anything other than an answer...what are you?" Leonardo whispered

"I am what you perceive yourself not to have", the voice said, "Night, Day, Time...I am with you all the days of your life, from infancy to teenager, to adult, I linger, I love, I loath, I am not on anyone's side, but I want everyone to know they are on the same page"

"Are you...a God?" asked Leonardo

"Why "a" God? Why entertain yourself with the notion of A God? Or God entirely?" said the voice

"Because I believe each man is a god...each man is free" Leonardo said

"You are not human" insisted the voice

"I am trained in the ways of disciplined warriors...men of honour, men of faith. The spirit of my sensei is within me, the spirits of his ancestors and those who taught him the ways of the Ninjitsu, the ways of the renaissance, the way of all things, fuels our every decision, I lead by the examples set by them...those that inspire us are who we follow, what we believe, and in doing so we become teachers to a whole new generation, the ones that will lead the next, and the next..." Leonardo replied.

"A recipe for life, conveyed to me so clearly by someone caught between worlds, you and your brothers will build a fine bridge Leonardo" the voice said in a commendable tone.

"So this conversation is over?" Leonardo asked, "You will leave me to the fulfilment of my day?"

"I will never leave you, but you have earned your day, you have flown through the night, and now it is time for sleep"

"Perhaps worrying about the anniversary is what keeps me awake...another year older, another cold reminder that time moves much slower for us, on average normal Turtles can live up to hundreds of years, we could outlive all our friends, and their descendents, we could outlive them too...whole family lines could blossom and burn out on our days watching over them...what kind of life is that to lead?" Leonardo asked, taking the time to tend to a minor itch on the front of his neck

"A life preserving a family tree is never one that is wasted" said the voice

Leonardo climbed back up to the roof and gazed outward at the frequently bustling metropolis he inhabited. It never wanted to sleep either, truly a kindred spirit to the restless Leonardo.

"You remind me so much of my sensei...do you visit him too? Is he aware of you?" Leonardo asked.

"Ask him in the morning" said the voice

"Are you telling me what to do?" Leonardo continued, a tad irritated

"You have the choice...I suggest you sleep on it" said the voice

"A task then...from something that seems to have the best intentions of teaching me something...very well, sleep it is" Leonardo said

"Have a productive and meaningful anniversary Leonardo" the voice said, it's echo gradually becoming fainter as it drifted away.

Leonardo smiled and looked back out at the view of the city. He spread his arms wide and closed his eyes, stretching himself as the weariness of the world weighed down on him.

if sleep was for cats, he felt like purring.


End file.
